1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a longitudinally-curved cutting blade adapted to be oscillated back and forth around a tooth root and having a pair of razor-sharp cutting edges that cut through the periodontal ligaments that hold a tooth within the socket of the jawbone. By cutting most of the periodontal ligaments with the disclosed cutting blade, the tooth may be extracted with much less force and with less risk of damage to surrounding bone or other soft tissues.
2. Background Art
The need for extracting a tooth arises from a variety of circumstances. Gross decay or trauma may compromise the integrity and function of the crown or the root of a tooth to the point that the tooth must be removed. Wisdom teeth have no functional utility for most patients and can cause a variety of problems that make it advisable to extract them. Such problems can include crowding and distorting the placement of functional teeth causing pain and, because wisdom teeth are hard to reach and clean, increasing the likelihood of oral infection and decay. Traditionally, tooth extraction has been performed using a combination of physical forces that create risk of damaging the bone surrounding the tooth and the adjacent gum tissue. Such techniques include rocking the tooth back and forth using forceps, leveraging the tooth using elevators to create pressure against the surrounding bone or, in some extreme cases, extracting a tooth or root by cutting into the bone or even using a chisel and hammer. In general, all of these methods pose the risk of damaging the bone socket surrounding the tooth and the gum tissue adjacent to the tooth. This damage increases patient discomfort, requires additional time to heal, and increases the risk of infection. Moreover, in many cases, when the bone surrounding the tooth has been damaged, such damage becomes permanent because of bone resorption. For all of the above reasons, a cutting blade is desirable that will minimize the force required to extract a tooth, minimize damage to surrounding bone and gum tissue, and be compatible with modern dental equipment utilizing high speed power equipment.